WEBVTT - Chapter 2 - 1964 0:00:00.800 --> 0:00:05.480 Lighthouse is a production of I Heart Radio and bamfor Productions. 0:00:06.559 --> 0:00:09.240 When you're young and the weight of the world becomes 0:00:09.280 --> 0:00:12.039 too much to bear, your room is often the safest 0:00:12.080 --> 0:00:14.800 place for you to hide away. Whether it's a fight 0:00:14.840 --> 0:00:17.360 with your parents, a bully bothering you at school, or 0:00:17.400 --> 0:00:20.400 even just the desperate need for some time alone. With 0:00:20.480 --> 0:00:23.919 the door closed, surrounded by your favorite things, your room 0:00:24.000 --> 0:00:28.800 becomes a sanctuary for you and you alone. Sometimes, though, 0:00:28.880 --> 0:00:31.880 that changes. Do you know what it's like to have 0:00:32.080 --> 0:00:35.080 your safe place turn against you, to have your room 0:00:35.120 --> 0:00:38.360 become a prison that entraps you night after night, day 0:00:38.400 --> 0:00:41.240 after day, with nowhere else to turn to as a 0:00:41.320 --> 0:00:45.520 safety net. I do, and it started after we found 0:00:45.520 --> 0:00:49.120 the dark room in the basement. It has been six 0:00:49.200 --> 0:00:53.320 months since we moved into Lighthouse. The season's changed and 0:00:53.400 --> 0:00:57.040 we welcomed a new year. Nineteen sixty four didn't feel 0:00:57.040 --> 0:01:00.560 any different than nineteen sixty three, but a new year 0:01:00.600 --> 0:01:03.840 often brings new beginnings. I hope that would be the 0:01:03.880 --> 0:01:06.600 case for us, but that couldn't have been further from 0:01:06.600 --> 0:01:10.080 the truth. After the first night in Lighthouse, my sister 0:01:10.120 --> 0:01:12.280 and I lived in constant fear of the man in 0:01:12.319 --> 0:01:15.640 the hat, though he appeared at my doorway the first night, 0:01:15.640 --> 0:01:19.040 we often saw him elsewhere. Sometimes it was a quick 0:01:19.040 --> 0:01:21.560 glance out of the corner of our eye. Others he 0:01:21.640 --> 0:01:26.040 made himself fully known, his sinister smile making our hair 0:01:26.200 --> 0:01:29.759 stand on end as he disappeared around a corner. Despite 0:01:29.800 --> 0:01:33.360 telling our parents what we had experienced, mother didn't believe us. 0:01:34.120 --> 0:01:37.240 She blamed the incidents on us acting out, claiming we 0:01:37.240 --> 0:01:39.400 were not giving our new home a chance and trying 0:01:39.400 --> 0:01:42.000 to sabotage all that she and our father worked for. 0:01:42.640 --> 0:01:45.400 She thought we missed our old life, as if moving 0:01:45.480 --> 0:01:48.240 from hotel to motel every three months could be something 0:01:48.400 --> 0:01:52.160 someone could actually miss. She forbid us from even speaking 0:01:52.160 --> 0:01:55.400 of it. Her father often didn't respond with anything beyond 0:01:55.440 --> 0:01:58.480 a sullen nod in agreement with her. He looked distant 0:01:58.560 --> 0:02:01.760 during the conversation and didn't seem to want to contribute 0:02:01.800 --> 0:02:04.400 to it until one night when I found him in 0:02:04.400 --> 0:02:08.160 the study. When we moved into Lighthouse, the home was 0:02:08.240 --> 0:02:11.880 already furnished from days before. Various bits and pieces of 0:02:11.880 --> 0:02:15.160 furniture littered the house, often hastily covered by a sheet 0:02:15.200 --> 0:02:18.400 to keep from getting dusty. Over time, my mother had 0:02:18.480 --> 0:02:22.040 cleaned up and arranged every room to her liking, except 0:02:22.120 --> 0:02:25.600 for the study. My father insisted that be left to him. 0:02:26.240 --> 0:02:29.519 Truth be told, he didn't change much about it. There 0:02:29.560 --> 0:02:31.880 was a desk and matching chair off to the side 0:02:31.880 --> 0:02:35.320 of the room, along with another seating area. Hanging on 0:02:35.360 --> 0:02:38.360 the wall above the couch were various trophies from parent 0:02:38.440 --> 0:02:42.000 hunting trips from long ago animal heads, including a deer, 0:02:42.160 --> 0:02:45.720 a lion, and a bear. There were grotesque things that 0:02:45.760 --> 0:02:48.960 my mother hated, but my father refused to remove. Just 0:02:49.080 --> 0:02:52.440 below them was an ancient shotgun, presumably the very same 0:02:52.520 --> 0:02:55.960 gun that claimed the lives of those animals. Despite all 0:02:56.000 --> 0:02:59.120 the extravagant decor, the focal point of the room was 0:02:59.160 --> 0:03:03.280 actually the law large decorative easy chair. It was covered 0:03:03.320 --> 0:03:07.239 in red velvet and soft to the touch. A fireplace 0:03:07.280 --> 0:03:09.760 sat before it so one could sit in front of 0:03:09.760 --> 0:03:13.600 it on cold winter nights. Just above the fireplace was 0:03:13.639 --> 0:03:16.639 an old painting, one that my father said his mother 0:03:16.720 --> 0:03:20.280 had commissioned when he was a child. It shows his parents, 0:03:20.440 --> 0:03:24.200 his brother, and a younger version of himself. The portrait 0:03:24.280 --> 0:03:28.600 made them look regal, like royalty, and I was fascinated 0:03:28.639 --> 0:03:32.160 by it. On the night he finally acknowledged the things 0:03:32.160 --> 0:03:34.920 in lighthouse. I had just finished getting ready for bed 0:03:35.080 --> 0:03:37.600 and came downstairs to wish him good night. He was 0:03:37.600 --> 0:03:40.400 sitting in the easy chair, leaned back, drink in hand. 0:03:41.120 --> 0:03:43.960 I wouldn't have considered him a drinker, having only ever 0:03:43.960 --> 0:03:47.320 seen him touch alcohol once before, but it was obvious 0:03:47.400 --> 0:03:49.760 that he was already a few in by that point, 0:03:50.040 --> 0:03:54.080 evident by the half empty bottle beside him. His eyes, 0:03:54.120 --> 0:03:58.240 slightly glazed, were staring at the portrait intently. He was 0:03:58.360 --> 0:04:01.760 absent mindedly rubbing his scar. I don't think he even 0:04:01.800 --> 0:04:04.600 registered in my being there until after I gave him 0:04:04.640 --> 0:04:08.320 a kiss. I turned to leave when he suddenly grabbed 0:04:08.360 --> 0:04:11.040 my arm with such force that I yelped in surprise. 0:04:11.560 --> 0:04:14.160 My father had never laid a finger on me before, 0:04:14.200 --> 0:04:17.360 so I was caught off guard. I looked at him, 0:04:17.640 --> 0:04:21.279 his eyes refocusing on me as his words slurred from 0:04:21.320 --> 0:04:25.479 his lips. Stay away from the man in the hat. 0:04:26.720 --> 0:04:29.240 He stared hard at me for a few moments before 0:04:29.279 --> 0:04:33.600 letting me go, turning back to his drink. Did he 0:04:33.680 --> 0:04:37.560 know something I didn't? I was so shocked he even 0:04:37.640 --> 0:04:41.920 acknowledged it that I did not press him further on it. Instead, 0:04:42.040 --> 0:04:45.039 I went to bed and slept fitfully with the knowledge 0:04:45.040 --> 0:04:48.680 of my father, believing our claims our only solace in 0:04:48.720 --> 0:04:53.000 those early days came from an unlikely source. At first, 0:04:53.320 --> 0:04:56.240 I thought it was just a dream, a reoccurring one 0:04:56.400 --> 0:04:59.640 at that one that was hard to separate from reality. 0:05:00.480 --> 0:05:03.960 In the dream, I was still in my bed. Sometimes 0:05:03.960 --> 0:05:05.880 I lean was with me, curled up in the dark. 0:05:06.640 --> 0:05:09.160 Somewhere in the distance, unknown to me, I could hear 0:05:09.200 --> 0:05:15.479 a soft melody start to play. Its tune was hauntingly familiar. However, 0:05:15.960 --> 0:05:19.599 I could not place the sound. It sounded like something 0:05:19.640 --> 0:05:22.400 that might play out of a jewelry or a music box, 0:05:22.440 --> 0:05:26.320 with a slight tinniness to it. Instead of searching for 0:05:26.400 --> 0:05:29.919 its source, its soothing song would begin to lull me 0:05:30.000 --> 0:05:34.880 back to sleep, toward a dream within a dream, Until 0:05:34.920 --> 0:05:38.359 one night I realized that it was no dream. The 0:05:38.520 --> 0:05:41.760 music was real. I quickly got out of bed and 0:05:41.800 --> 0:05:45.320 listened attentively. At first I thought it was coming from 0:05:45.360 --> 0:05:49.400 a car traveling down the main road. Sound traveled funny 0:05:49.440 --> 0:05:52.960 along the bluff. I stepped out onto my balcony, the 0:05:53.040 --> 0:05:56.719 cool air coming off the ocean chilling my skin. I 0:05:56.800 --> 0:05:59.400 looked off to the lighthouse in the not so far 0:05:59.480 --> 0:06:03.279 distance and strained my ears to hear the melody, but 0:06:03.360 --> 0:06:07.640 out here was not as prevalent. Stepping back into my room, 0:06:07.640 --> 0:06:10.919 I closed my eyes to concentrate, doing my best to 0:06:10.960 --> 0:06:13.680 block out all other sound. I strained my ears to 0:06:13.760 --> 0:06:17.039 follow the melody. I moved about the area, playing a 0:06:17.080 --> 0:06:20.159 makeshift game of hot and cold, trying to find where 0:06:20.160 --> 0:06:22.800 in the room the music got louder. On the far 0:06:22.920 --> 0:06:26.000 side of the room, opposite my four poster bed, was 0:06:26.040 --> 0:06:29.080 where it was the loudest. Was it coming from the walls. 0:06:30.040 --> 0:06:33.040 On the floor below me was an ornate metal vent 0:06:33.240 --> 0:06:36.680 that I hadn't paid much attention to before, But now 0:06:37.160 --> 0:06:40.119 I dropped to all fours and placed my ear close 0:06:40.200 --> 0:06:44.320 to it. The music grew louder. Who was coming from 0:06:44.360 --> 0:06:49.320 somewhere in Lighthouse. I didn't know where yet, but I 0:06:49.400 --> 0:07:33.480 was going to find out Lighthouse Chapter two. The next morning, 0:07:33.600 --> 0:07:35.960 my sister came into my room to wake me. The 0:07:36.000 --> 0:07:38.680 first thing I saw was her smile as she excitedly 0:07:38.760 --> 0:07:42.040 tried to tell me that she had something for me. However, 0:07:42.120 --> 0:07:44.360 I was anxious to tell her of my discovery, and 0:07:44.400 --> 0:07:48.040 I spoke over her. The music isn't a dream I said, 0:07:48.280 --> 0:07:51.600 it's coming from inside the house. She frowned a bit, 0:07:51.800 --> 0:07:54.320 as eight year olds with a single minded purpose often 0:07:54.400 --> 0:07:57.520 do when their train of thought is derailed. When she 0:07:57.520 --> 0:08:00.160 didn't respond, I nudged her. It was then and I 0:08:00.200 --> 0:08:03.560 noticed she was hiding something behind her back. It was 0:08:03.600 --> 0:08:07.120 a card once she had decorated with flowers and a 0:08:07.200 --> 0:08:11.360 gigantic smiling son. Confused, I opened it and read in 0:08:11.440 --> 0:08:14.960 her crayon streaked handwriting what she had written inside. Happy 0:08:15.000 --> 0:08:17.840 Birthday to the greatest sister in the world. It was 0:08:17.880 --> 0:08:21.800 a birthday card for me. I had completely forgotten that 0:08:21.840 --> 0:08:24.480 it was my twelfth birthday. I wrapped her up in 0:08:24.520 --> 0:08:27.200 the biggest hug I had ever given anyone, and squealed 0:08:27.240 --> 0:08:30.200 with the light Thank you, Leney, this is the best 0:08:30.200 --> 0:08:32.520 birthday card I've ever gotten. What do you want to 0:08:32.520 --> 0:08:36.280 do today, she asked me. It's your special day. I 0:08:36.320 --> 0:08:40.440 smiled at her, because the previous night determined exactly what 0:08:40.600 --> 0:08:43.360 my answer was going to be. We made her way 0:08:43.400 --> 0:08:46.719 downstairs to the kitchen where my mother was preparing breakfast. 0:08:47.040 --> 0:08:49.000 She put a plate of bacon and eggs in front 0:08:49.040 --> 0:08:52.760 of me, arranged to look like a smiling face. Happy Birthday, 0:08:52.800 --> 0:08:57.600 birthday girl, she greeted me warmly. I enthusiastically dug into 0:08:57.679 --> 0:09:00.360 the meal as my response, knowing that I would likely 0:09:00.400 --> 0:09:03.240 need the energy for the day's mission. I think someone 0:09:03.320 --> 0:09:06.439 forgot to turn off the radio last night, my mother continued. 0:09:06.880 --> 0:09:08.920 I heard it in the middle of the night. It 0:09:08.960 --> 0:09:11.880 wasn't the radio, Mama, my sister said, we don't know 0:09:11.920 --> 0:09:15.120 where it's from. No need to make up excuses, my 0:09:15.160 --> 0:09:19.400 mother replied, just please try to remember to turn it off, okay, sweetie. 0:09:20.000 --> 0:09:23.920 Leey didn't argue beyond that, but instead asked about my 0:09:24.000 --> 0:09:28.800 father's whereabouts, causing my mother to frown. He's still sleeping, 0:09:29.320 --> 0:09:31.839 she told us, with a hint of sadness. He was 0:09:31.920 --> 0:09:34.560 up late last night in his study, but I'm sure 0:09:34.600 --> 0:09:38.640 he'll be down soon. I, however, did not wait for that. Instead, 0:09:38.920 --> 0:09:41.480 with a kiss on my mother's cheek and an assurance 0:09:41.520 --> 0:09:43.680 to my sister that I would be back soon, I 0:09:43.800 --> 0:09:47.080 ran upstairs to get ready for the day. I quickly showered, dressed, 0:09:47.080 --> 0:09:49.600 and pulled out the flashlight my parents got me in 0:09:49.640 --> 0:09:52.240 case of a power outage. I had never used it, 0:09:52.320 --> 0:09:54.839 so I clicked it on a few times to make 0:09:54.840 --> 0:09:58.240 sure it's still worked. When I was satisfied, I set 0:09:58.280 --> 0:10:01.240 out to find my sister, who was out playing. The 0:10:01.280 --> 0:10:04.760 grounds surrounding lighthouse were vast and prime for two young 0:10:04.840 --> 0:10:08.400 girls to explore, and those early months we covered every 0:10:08.440 --> 0:10:11.720 inch of the property, finding the nooks and crannies long 0:10:11.800 --> 0:10:15.040 lost to time. Though we were not allowed in the lighthouse, 0:10:15.559 --> 0:10:18.400 Lenie still played near it. Even if we wanted to 0:10:18.440 --> 0:10:21.320 get inside, we couldn't. The only entry was a door 0:10:21.400 --> 0:10:24.520 secured with the padlock, one whose key was nowhere to 0:10:24.559 --> 0:10:27.880 be found, at least according to my father, And after 0:10:27.920 --> 0:10:30.040 all the talk of how unsafe it was, we were 0:10:30.040 --> 0:10:33.120 afraid of the floor collapsing beneath us anyway. So there 0:10:33.120 --> 0:10:36.280 it sat, a reminder of days gone by, a relic 0:10:36.360 --> 0:10:39.360 of the past. I hadn't seen the light atop the 0:10:39.440 --> 0:10:42.199 lighthouse since our first night in the house. I didn't 0:10:42.200 --> 0:10:45.120 know what caused it, and because of how afraid Lenie 0:10:45.200 --> 0:10:48.400 already was that evening, I never told her about it. 0:10:48.559 --> 0:10:51.400 It was for the best. It was here that I 0:10:51.440 --> 0:10:55.040 found Lenie playing among the flowers growing at the base 0:10:55.040 --> 0:10:58.280 of the lighthouse. She was glad to see me, knowing 0:10:58.320 --> 0:11:00.880 I was ready to begin our mission, and followed me 0:11:00.920 --> 0:11:04.040 back to the house. Once inside, she ran to her 0:11:04.120 --> 0:11:06.439 room to grab her own flashlight while I waited a 0:11:06.520 --> 0:11:09.079 mind to tell her the plan of action I had formulated. 0:11:09.920 --> 0:11:12.640 She was taking unusually long as I was about to 0:11:12.679 --> 0:11:15.960 go get her myself, until I stopped dead in my tracks. 0:11:16.760 --> 0:11:19.360 Coming up from the vent in my bedroom again, I 0:11:19.440 --> 0:11:23.840 could hear it, the music box melody in the light 0:11:23.920 --> 0:11:26.440 of day. It was even more beautiful than I remembered 0:11:26.440 --> 0:11:29.160 it to be from the night before. My breath caught 0:11:29.200 --> 0:11:32.120 in my throat as I was entranced by it, but 0:11:32.200 --> 0:11:35.360 only for a moment. I quickly ran across the hall 0:11:35.400 --> 0:11:37.600 to Linie's room to tell her, but when I burst 0:11:37.679 --> 0:11:40.040 through the door, she was already leaning down toward the 0:11:40.120 --> 0:11:43.720 vent in her own room, attentively listening. It's in the vents, 0:11:43.760 --> 0:11:47.679 She told me it's coming from downstairs. She grabbed her 0:11:47.720 --> 0:11:50.520 flashlight from the dresser and followed me to explore the 0:11:50.559 --> 0:11:53.240 rest of the house. We opted to start on the 0:11:53.280 --> 0:11:55.960 first floor, as it made sense that the music was 0:11:56.040 --> 0:11:58.800 traveling up the vents to us, with Linie's starting in 0:11:58.800 --> 0:12:01.960 the dining room while I searched in the library. Every 0:12:02.000 --> 0:12:04.640 time we were near event, we stopped to listen and 0:12:04.720 --> 0:12:07.240 tried to determine if the music was louder or not. 0:12:07.559 --> 0:12:10.080 By the time I found myself outside my father's study, 0:12:10.360 --> 0:12:14.079 I realized he was inside. He must have awakened sometime 0:12:14.160 --> 0:12:17.800 during our search and was already sitting in his favorite armchair. 0:12:18.200 --> 0:12:21.360 I usually didn't like to disturb him, but being as 0:12:21.360 --> 0:12:26.319 how today was a special occasion, I tiptoed him. Good morning, father, 0:12:26.880 --> 0:12:29.360 I said, causing him to stir a bit in his chair. 0:12:29.760 --> 0:12:31.880 He turned to see me and only gave me a 0:12:31.920 --> 0:12:35.560 polite nod of acknowledgment before turning away. I waited to 0:12:35.600 --> 0:12:38.440 see if he would say anything, and when he didn't, 0:12:38.720 --> 0:12:42.960 I pressed further. It's my birthday, I told him. I'm 0:12:43.000 --> 0:12:47.160 twelve today. He turned again, now using his entire body 0:12:47.240 --> 0:12:50.320 and not just his head, and looked at me. So 0:12:50.400 --> 0:12:54.720 it is, he replied, Happy birthday. He raised his glass 0:12:54.760 --> 0:12:58.120 to me as I realized he was already drinking. It 0:12:58.200 --> 0:13:00.720 was not even ten am, and here he was already 0:13:00.800 --> 0:13:04.120 drowning in liquor. When he turned away again, I left 0:13:04.120 --> 0:13:07.760 the study upset that I did not receive warmer birthday, 0:13:07.760 --> 0:13:10.280 wishing I couldn't dwell on that for too long, though, 0:13:10.480 --> 0:13:13.319 as I still had a job to do. After about 0:13:13.360 --> 0:13:15.640 an hour or so of searching, my sister and I 0:13:15.679 --> 0:13:18.720 met in the kitchen. Neither of us had any luck 0:13:18.880 --> 0:13:22.520 so far, and we're feeling a little deflated. We sat 0:13:22.559 --> 0:13:25.160 down at the table to have a snack and formulate 0:13:25.200 --> 0:13:28.720 our next move. As we both took turns biting into 0:13:28.760 --> 0:13:32.400 an apple, the music continued to play from somewhere. It 0:13:32.520 --> 0:13:35.520 was beginning to drive me mad, not being able to 0:13:35.559 --> 0:13:39.040 figure it out. When we finished our apple, I brought 0:13:39.040 --> 0:13:41.679 our plate over to the sink to wash it and 0:13:41.760 --> 0:13:45.920 noticed that the music seemed to be louder. I looked around, 0:13:46.160 --> 0:13:50.360 trying to find event nearby, but to no avail. Looking 0:13:50.360 --> 0:13:52.960 to the left of the sink, the house is ancient 0:13:53.040 --> 0:13:56.360 dumb waiter sat on a whim. I opened its door, 0:13:56.760 --> 0:14:01.920 the metal grating from years of disuse. The melody wafted 0:14:02.000 --> 0:14:04.920 up the shaft into the kitchen. My sister and I 0:14:04.960 --> 0:14:08.320 looked at each other as we came to the same realization. 0:14:08.840 --> 0:14:11.880 It was coming from the basement. The entry to the 0:14:11.880 --> 0:14:15.160 basement was in the pantry just off the kitchen. We 0:14:15.200 --> 0:14:17.760 hadn't yet explored it since we moved in, but now 0:14:17.840 --> 0:14:22.520 seemed like the perfect time. The door swung open slowly 0:14:22.840 --> 0:14:27.680 with a horrific creek. It revealed the basement below us, 0:14:27.800 --> 0:14:32.640 darker than pitch lights, which proved to be fruitless. The 0:14:32.640 --> 0:14:35.880 bulbs likely hadn't been changed in years and were burnt out. 0:14:36.720 --> 0:14:39.360 Leni stood at the top of the stairs, looking down 0:14:39.440 --> 0:14:42.040 into the abyss. I could tell by the way she 0:14:42.160 --> 0:14:45.240 was staring that this might be the end of her journey. 0:14:45.640 --> 0:14:49.840 I'm scared, she admitted, her eyes never leaving the darkness. 0:14:50.320 --> 0:14:53.640 The music still wafted up from the shadowy depths below, 0:14:53.760 --> 0:14:57.440 like a siren song, calling out to us. It's okay, 0:14:57.720 --> 0:14:59.840 I told her, I can take it from here. I 0:15:00.040 --> 0:15:03.200 turned on my flashlight and aimed its beam down the steps. 0:15:03.880 --> 0:15:08.320 To my relief, everything looked surprisingly normal. However, I couldn't 0:15:08.360 --> 0:15:11.480 help feeling a bit of apprehension. As I took my 0:15:11.560 --> 0:15:15.440 first step downward, the wood groaned beneath my feet, and 0:15:15.480 --> 0:15:18.520 I hoped the wood wasn't rotted. I took the next step, 0:15:18.560 --> 0:15:20.880 and then another. Soon I was at the bottom of 0:15:20.880 --> 0:15:24.560 the stairs, my flashlight beam moving back and forth as 0:15:24.560 --> 0:15:27.920 I looked around. What do you see, Leney called out 0:15:27.920 --> 0:15:30.720 to me. Still standing in the doorway, A lot of junk, 0:15:31.040 --> 0:15:34.280 I replied, my father's family hoarded a lot of their 0:15:34.280 --> 0:15:36.920 belongings down here, it seemed. While the rest of the 0:15:36.960 --> 0:15:39.560 house was dusty when we first moved in, it was 0:15:39.760 --> 0:15:43.280 nothing compared to the basement. I remember my mother telling 0:15:43.320 --> 0:15:45.480 me that cleaning it out was a product for a 0:15:45.560 --> 0:15:49.800 rainy day. I moved cautiously in the darkness, not wanting 0:15:49.840 --> 0:15:54.080 to bump into anything or accidentally break something. The music 0:15:54.160 --> 0:15:58.440 continued to play, softly, coming from the left side of 0:15:58.480 --> 0:16:01.720 the room. The basement ran the length of the entire house, 0:16:02.160 --> 0:16:06.600 making it seem impossibly large, especially filled with so many things. 0:16:07.240 --> 0:16:10.880 Old furniture, large portraits, and boxes upon boxes made it 0:16:10.920 --> 0:16:15.640 a pseudo maze full of family memories. After some careful navigating, 0:16:15.880 --> 0:16:18.600 I found myself standing in front of a solid wall, 0:16:19.040 --> 0:16:21.840 or rather a wall with metal shelving lining the length 0:16:21.880 --> 0:16:26.400 of it. I stopped in my tracks and listened. Music 0:16:26.520 --> 0:16:30.680 still played, but it sounded more towards the right. I 0:16:30.680 --> 0:16:34.520 swung my flashlight in the direction and slowly walked that way, 0:16:34.840 --> 0:16:38.080 stopping every few steps to listen again. The source of 0:16:38.120 --> 0:16:42.680 the music was close, but where I looked at the 0:16:42.680 --> 0:16:46.760 metal shelf against the wall, and confusion taking a brief 0:16:46.800 --> 0:16:49.480 look around. There didn't seem to be anything of importance 0:16:49.480 --> 0:16:51.880 on the shelf itself, just a bunch of old junk 0:16:51.920 --> 0:16:55.360 and small boxes. Perhaps in the house this old the 0:16:55.440 --> 0:16:58.920 acoustics were playing tricks on me. Was it actually coming 0:16:59.000 --> 0:17:02.440 from somewhere else in entirely? I began to make my 0:17:02.520 --> 0:17:04.959 way back toward my sister when I heard a crash 0:17:05.080 --> 0:17:09.359 behind me. I quickly turned and directed my beam on 0:17:09.400 --> 0:17:13.160 the floor. Lying there was a box, one that had 0:17:13.280 --> 0:17:17.320 fallen near where I was just standing. Did I do that? 0:17:18.040 --> 0:17:21.400 Did I knock something off balance without realizing it, causing 0:17:21.400 --> 0:17:24.840 it to fall? Just beyond the box? I spot an 0:17:24.840 --> 0:17:29.080 old pair of shoes on their own. They wouldn't have 0:17:29.119 --> 0:17:32.080 caught my eye, but it looked like they were attached 0:17:32.240 --> 0:17:36.640 to a pair of pants. I slowly moved my beam up, 0:17:37.359 --> 0:17:41.439 and those pants turned into a man's overcoat. A feeling 0:17:41.480 --> 0:17:44.359 of dread formed in my stomach as my brain began 0:17:44.400 --> 0:17:46.840 to formulate that it wasn't just a random assortment of 0:17:46.880 --> 0:17:49.879 clothing bunch together in the dark basement, but rather something 0:17:49.880 --> 0:17:54.680 else entirely, someone else entirely. My flashlight beam continued its 0:17:54.760 --> 0:17:59.679 slow ascent up the coat as my dread continued to build. 0:18:00.119 --> 0:18:02.600 I was inches away from revealing the identity of this 0:18:02.720 --> 0:18:06.080 stranger in my basement, but in my heart I already 0:18:06.160 --> 0:18:10.160 knew who it was. A ghastly smile greeted me as 0:18:10.200 --> 0:18:13.560 my light fell upon it. The man in the hat 0:18:13.720 --> 0:18:28.520 was there. Lighthouse will return after these messages, and now 0:18:28.960 --> 0:18:37.320 back to lighthouse, I screamed, but through some sort of miracle, 0:18:37.400 --> 0:18:40.040 continued to hold my ground. When I exhausted all the 0:18:40.080 --> 0:18:42.840 air in my lungs, I stood frozen in fear as 0:18:42.880 --> 0:18:45.040 my eyes locked with those of the man in the hat. 0:18:45.640 --> 0:18:49.800 His smile never wavered, nor did his stance. He simply 0:18:49.880 --> 0:18:53.000 stared at me. With my first clear look at him. 0:18:53.040 --> 0:18:56.240 He looked to be in his late fifties. The flesh 0:18:56.440 --> 0:18:59.639 of his skin hung loose, as if he had started 0:18:59.640 --> 0:19:03.159 to deep compose, giving him an even more distressing appearance. 0:19:03.600 --> 0:19:06.320 His clothing, though once an immaculate condition, now was in 0:19:06.320 --> 0:19:09.600 the process of slowly falling apart, as if moths has 0:19:09.640 --> 0:19:11.919 started to make a meal of it. We were at 0:19:11.920 --> 0:19:14.639 an impasse, as neither of us moved a muscle for 0:19:14.640 --> 0:19:17.719 several moments. I was about to take a step backwards 0:19:17.880 --> 0:19:20.560 to get away from this horrifying specter. When the man 0:19:20.640 --> 0:19:23.320 in the hat turned his head toward the wall, his 0:19:23.520 --> 0:19:27.840 arm long and gaunt, lifted in unison as a single 0:19:27.960 --> 0:19:31.600 finger pointed toward the shelf I had been looking through earlier. 0:19:32.080 --> 0:19:34.719 At first, I wasn't sure what he was doing. I 0:19:34.760 --> 0:19:37.359 hesitated to get closer to him, but my curiosity was 0:19:37.400 --> 0:19:40.280 beginning to get the better of me. Was there something 0:19:40.320 --> 0:19:43.320 on the shelf he wanted, something he wanted me to see. 0:19:44.000 --> 0:19:46.240 I tried to think of what it could possibly be. 0:19:46.760 --> 0:19:51.879 When I heard the music once again. It sounded like 0:19:51.920 --> 0:19:54.359 it was coming from the direction of the shelf, and 0:19:54.400 --> 0:19:57.440 then it dawned on me the music wasn't coming from 0:19:57.480 --> 0:20:01.040 something on the shelf, but from behind it. I took 0:20:01.040 --> 0:20:03.280 a step forward to see what was there. When I 0:20:03.320 --> 0:20:06.080 felt a tap on my shoulder. I yelped and nearly 0:20:06.160 --> 0:20:07.840 jumped ten feet in the air. As I turned to 0:20:07.880 --> 0:20:11.440 see leaning my sister staring back at me. I heard 0:20:11.440 --> 0:20:15.160 you scream, she said, I thought you were hurt. Despite 0:20:15.160 --> 0:20:17.520 her fear of the dark, my sister made the trek 0:20:17.520 --> 0:20:20.160 through the basement to make sure I was okay. What 0:20:20.280 --> 0:20:22.520 was it, she asked, reminding me that the man in 0:20:22.560 --> 0:20:25.480 the hat was behind me. I turned in his direction again, 0:20:25.560 --> 0:20:28.080 using my light to show her the visitor, but instead 0:20:28.880 --> 0:20:33.600 he was gone. What are you looking for, she asked me, Nothing, 0:20:33.760 --> 0:20:36.240 I replied, but I think I found where the music's 0:20:36.280 --> 0:20:39.040 coming from. I went back to the shelf and pushed 0:20:39.040 --> 0:20:43.439 some boxes aside. There hidden behind the metal rack was 0:20:43.520 --> 0:20:46.760 a small wooden door. If not for the man in 0:20:46.800 --> 0:20:49.080 the hat, I never would have taken a second look. 0:20:49.600 --> 0:20:52.880 I considered trying to move the entire shelf, but it 0:20:52.920 --> 0:20:55.959 was next to impossible with everything still on it. I 0:20:56.000 --> 0:20:58.080 asked my sister to shine her light at the shelf 0:20:58.080 --> 0:21:01.000 while I started to remove boxes from it. One by one. 0:21:01.040 --> 0:21:03.119 I took them away and stacked them neatly near by. 0:21:03.840 --> 0:21:06.159 Among the things were artifacts from the days when the 0:21:06.240 --> 0:21:10.040 lighthouse was still in operation, a container of spark plugs, 0:21:10.080 --> 0:21:13.360 presumably for the light itself, a box of old clothing 0:21:13.480 --> 0:21:17.520 including a seaman's cap, and instruction manuals for various controls. 0:21:18.080 --> 0:21:20.240 There was more than I anticipated, and it took close 0:21:20.280 --> 0:21:23.439 to twenty minutes for me to finish. With the boxes removed, 0:21:23.480 --> 0:21:26.600 it was significantly easier to move the shelfing from its place. 0:21:27.280 --> 0:21:30.360 It wasn't long before the door was fully revealed. It 0:21:30.400 --> 0:21:32.920 wasn't until that moment that I realized the pit in 0:21:33.000 --> 0:21:36.879 my stomach had returned. Just an uncomfortable feeling at first, 0:21:37.200 --> 0:21:40.880 but it grew steadily creeping over me like an icy chill. 0:21:41.520 --> 0:21:44.399 My intuition was telling me that whatever was behind this 0:21:44.560 --> 0:21:49.280 door was something that was not meant for us. My sister, however, 0:21:49.480 --> 0:21:52.119 her bravery growing by the second, ran up to the 0:21:52.160 --> 0:21:55.280 door and placed her ear against the wood. She smiled 0:21:55.280 --> 0:21:59.400 as she looked at me. It's inside, she exclaimed. Before 0:21:59.400 --> 0:22:01.399 I could stop where she grabbed the doors handle. My 0:22:01.440 --> 0:22:07.160 stomach lurched as she did, anticipating the worst. It felt 0:22:07.160 --> 0:22:10.359 as if the world around us changed. Staring into the 0:22:10.400 --> 0:22:13.119 gaping blackness of this secret room, I felt a rush 0:22:13.119 --> 0:22:16.240 of stale air escape it, as if something was trapped 0:22:16.240 --> 0:22:19.760 inside for years and hurried out towards freedom. The dread 0:22:19.840 --> 0:22:23.080 I already felt inside me reached a breaking point, and 0:22:23.119 --> 0:22:26.639 it felt like an impressive force pressing down on my shoulders, 0:22:27.359 --> 0:22:29.399 like all the light in the world had gone out 0:22:29.440 --> 0:22:31.840 in a single instant, leaving us in a world of 0:22:31.920 --> 0:22:35.800 never ending darkness. Lenny was already inside the room, using 0:22:35.800 --> 0:22:39.080 her flashlight to search I crouched to enter the room 0:22:39.200 --> 0:22:41.159 as I was a hair taller than the door frame, 0:22:41.480 --> 0:22:45.440 and I felt something brush against my face. I momentarily panic, 0:22:45.560 --> 0:22:48.440 thinking I had walked into a spiderweb, only to find 0:22:48.440 --> 0:22:52.280 my hand hit a tiny metal chain. My mind registered 0:22:52.320 --> 0:22:55.240 it as connection to a lightbulb, and I gave it 0:22:55.240 --> 0:22:59.720 a gentle tug. The room illuminated in a deep red color, 0:23:00.280 --> 0:23:03.800 letting us see a little more beyond our flashlights. It 0:23:03.840 --> 0:23:07.280 wasn't that large of a space, maybe four feet by six, 0:23:07.640 --> 0:23:10.240 but I had a table with two large trays, along 0:23:10.240 --> 0:23:13.200 with another shelf filled with an assortment of things. Jars 0:23:13.200 --> 0:23:15.800 of some sort of liquid pelled to paper, and various 0:23:15.840 --> 0:23:18.679 other odds and ends sat on it above our heads. 0:23:19.000 --> 0:23:21.639 A line of string criss cross just beneath the ceiling, 0:23:21.760 --> 0:23:24.479 with clothes pins hanging from it. But what drew our 0:23:24.520 --> 0:23:28.199 attention before anything else was on the table itself, a 0:23:28.280 --> 0:23:32.000 small music box, the source of the mysterious music that 0:23:32.119 --> 0:23:35.680